City of gold...?

Celestia got only four hours of sleep. This usually happened when her student was over, but so far Twilight was unbearably obnoxious. Still, whats to expect from a unicorn whose special talent is casting magic itself? The alicorn sat up in her queen-sized bed, smacking her lips, and destroyed a vicious sounding alarm clock signaling in a very lewd ring that it was currently six o' clock in the morning. How she envied Luna at times, not having a student of her own that drove her to near insanity with crazy sleeping habits. But, time to raise the sun.

Celestia stepped out onto her balcony after fighting herself in getting out of her comfy, cozy... Her eyes started to droop, a drool line making itself present from her now agape and softly snoring mouth. Almost falling to her left, Celestia woke up, now fully alert... If it were only long enough to raise the gaseous mass. As she made her way to the railing, her horn lit up, giving off a light gold hue.

After about what seemed like eternity, the sun was up. Now time for her reward. As her wings flared, she heard a faint clopping coming near her door. Please don't be Twilight, please don't be Twilight please don't be-

"Good morning princess Celestia!" Twilight...

"Hey Jack, spare a cap, man?" Rotface, a ghoul, a beggar, and most importantly a gossiper. Jack paused, and reached into his trench coat pocket, and found a bottle cap, and flipped the ghoul the spare change. Rotface caught it and nodded at the courier.

"People are starting up on the Sierra Madre, people getting a looping signal from who historians think is some dame named 'Vera Keyes'. Supposed to have been some pre-war celebrity. No idea where the signal is coming from, but I hear it's at some underground bunker. All I know about it. Wanna hear another one?" Rotface asked with a raspy, dry voice. The ghoul did have mostly reliable information, and Jack could spare another...

Flipping another cap, he let the ghoul continue.

"Heard about the king's cyber-dog. Rumor has it that dog used to belong to the legion, but I wouldn't believe that. Dress wearing fuckers still use machetes in the middle of a firefight, so I don't expect it to be true." He motioned for another, and Jack politely refused.

"Sorry, but I'll get to you later. Gotta catch up on important things. 'Till next time."

"I understand. Have a pleasant day, six." As Jack walked to the strip, he wondered: People already know my number huh? Geez, rotty must hang around some interesting people if he knows so much...

Just then when he reached the gate of the Strip, he noticed two things. One was having a signal from the Sierra Madre casino. The other, was the unmistakable feeling of being watched. After getting the rather repetitive 'move along' from the gate keeper, he pushed through the gates. The exhausted courier shrugged it off as a effect of his now increasing sleeplessness. Saying a friendly howdy to victor, he walked through the doors of the lucky 38 casino. After given a news update on the strip's going-ons from a pair of securitrons, he disregarded the news as unimportant and headed for the elevator.

Still, the feeling followed him. The elevator doors closed, and Jack leaned against a wall. Pushing the button for the presidential suite, the machine complied. Almost there...

Already undressing, the elevator made it's correct level and opened its doors to the courier's presidential suite. Hopping over, he dropped all equipment and clothes he had on, save for boxers, a grey shirt, and his pip-boy glove. Jack then proceeded to jump into bed and pull the covers over his tired and aching body.

Still yet, the feeling followed him.

"No, give me an hour...Please?" Celestia wrapped one of her plush pillows on her head, trying to go back to sleep, but to no avail. Especially when there's an impatient unicorn poking at you and pulling her out of bed with magic.

"Come on Celestia! I'm going back to ponyville tomorrow! The last thing on my checklist is to try the new spell with you! Just this and you can return to your sleeping." Seems like a somewhat fair compromise...

Rolling out of her bed, Celestia fought for balance, and her bloodshot eyes weren't helping. After taking a minute or so to right herself, the princess set out for a new goal: coffee. Initially ignoring Twilight's rambling, the alicorn trotted down the tile halls of her castle, mindlessly walking through the hallways, Twilight nipping at her heels. Whatever the lavender mare said was being drowned out by white noise. Thankfully, Celestia's half sleep walking had led her to the royal kitchen. One of the chefs there recognized his princess's haze and set a black coffee in front of her. She nodded to show appreciation and gulped it down in record time. Celestia then felt something poking her back. She craned her neck to see it was none other than Twilight, an impatient look in her eyes. Celestia sighed audibly and started to walk back into the hallways.

"So where should we try the spell? In the training grounds? Oh! how about in the garden?" Twilight practically squealed. At least Twilight is picking safer locations... I suppose she doesn't want to try in the study because of the billions of books she still hasn't read...

"The garden seems like an area suited for the situation." Celestia muttered, getting some sense back into her mind, but as she knew, it was only temporary. "We use it so rarely nowadays... And to think it's creator doesn't visit too often..."

"Maybe because discord is in the garden?"

*yawn* "Possibly. But I know Luna visits these grounds often. I guess it was something in the past involving him. Anyway let's hurry up before my caffeine wears off."

"Lily, wait here. I'll get this one."

"Alright dearie, but don't be too long!"

"Oh you just stay put." Jack said, pulling out a combat knife From his boot. Chance's knife, a weapon Jack wasn't too proud of, for he took it out of a great khans' grave. But he supposed if he was only killing fiends and other goons that preyed upon the innocent it would be alright in chance's eyes, if the said khan was still breathing of course.

Outside of the crimson caravans' walls a fiend who looked like he was trying to climb the walls with obviously no avail. Jack sneaked in his stealth suit Mk II, still testing the suit's capabilities. Knife in hand, the courier crouched and slowly moved to his target. The fiend had a laser RCW on his back. If it all turned to shit, Jack was sure he could handle the situation, but would undoubtedly go on a guilt trip with the damned built-in voice. At least the stims and med-x would be injected...he hoped.

After what seemed like hours, he reached a wall big enough to cover his body, and observed.

He heard a faint: "Yadamneddeathclawgivememyearringsback! Ineedthattoputonmycamelsoshecangotoschooland-" It had to be turbo, or at least a mixture of more than three drugs from his next inaudible slurs of random gibberish. Time to go in for the kill... He held up his knife, expertly wielding the blade in a clean, forty-five degree angle.

"JACK!" Lily! He whipped around, as did the fiend, hands still on the wall. Drawing his Thompson-like energy weapon, Jack turned once again and slit his throat without even letting the druggie put his finger on the trigger.

Sprinting in maximum overdrive, he got to Lily's location, only to find her dead. Jack dropped the knife, and fell on his knees. A hail of bullets had seized her from the world of the living, only a hat in a mesh of blood and brains signified a head was once atop the nightkins' shoulders. Only an incredibly skilled warrior could have taken her down this easily. He looked up, looking for anyone who might have done it.

Then, in the horizon, he saw... Himself? Yes! It was him! He... He was smiling ear to ear, showing black, twisted teeth and the eyes... The eyes were glowing red, red as the very sun. He wore the same sneaking suit, the same hair, scars... It was him. Jack looked at himself straight into his own eyes. His other self sprinted away, and disappeared into the sands of the wastes. He wanted to scream, but his vocal cords did not respond. He wanted to stand up, but his legs didn't cooperate either. His eyes teared up, but he could not blink.

It was as if time itself stopped, with blown sand still in mid-flight. As he watched his unmoving surroundings with his still eyes, he felt a figure come up to his left side. As this character came into view, he saw a black coated figure, his face not at all visible under the hood the figure had on. The scythe and bony fingers only confirmed Jack's suspicions. Death came closer to him and kneeled down in front of him.

"Why do you ssssstill dwell on thisssss memory Jack? Why do you insssssisssssst on dreaming thissssss every night? You mussssst forgive yourself sssssooner or later... In the meantime... Wake up! WAKE UP!"

"Ready Celestia?"

"Now, Twilight, let me triple-check here. You have the markings down, the process written down, including the exact amount of energy that must be put into this spell, correct?

"Yup!" Twilight chirped happily. Celestia looked around craning her neck. They were in the middle of the royal garden, right in the center of the maze. To her left was Discord's statue, still wearing that stupid expression, and much more enchantments to make sure the impractical joker wasn't going free anytime soon. to her right was a White tile and cement fountain, spurting water with vigor, as if to represent youth itself. To her rear was the only entrance or exit to the maze itself, all around was normal six foot tall shrubs trimmed as to not have any branched protruding outwards. To the front of her was a sort of pentagram she wasn't entirely familiar with. As she looked closer, she found many different languages including Zebrican and griffon runes written with white chalk in a six hoof (foot) circumference. But what she didn't recognize was the text in the middle. Strange... I thought I knew every kind of written language...

"Ready princess?"

"Ah, well. just one more question... Whats the language in the center there?" She pointed her hoof in the middle.

"Oh! that's the written language of a specific area in the alternate universe uses! It's called uhm..." Twilight tapped her chin thoughtfully with her hoof. "English! One of the creatures called it English!"

"How intelligent are these 'creatures' exactly?"

"Well, they have alot more advanced weaponry than us, they address each other by name... They wear clothes... Fairly intelligent, as much as us I would assume."

"Then let's have a look-see, shall we?" Celestia was hooked. Maybe we could figure out how these creatures work, or observe their technology, make something that the populace can use! And, and... I'm sounding alot like Twilight...

"Alright. Now, the first thing you do is..."

Come to the Sierra Madre, a place where wealth and prestige await around every corner!

Fucking Vera, why couldn't you make another radio broadcast loop?! Thanks to a small egg timer, Jack awoke, hands on his ribs. Feeling little to no pain, he walked over to a doctors' bag placed atop the desk in his presidential suite and got to work on his mending.

Once satisfied with his handiwork, he went over to the discarded elite riot armor on the floor. He then proceeded to dress himself, but the helmet not quite yet. Turning to his left, he picked up some of the weapons in his weapons locker. Seeing the tools of death from the great divide in the case made him wonder. Did Victor come in here when I was sleeping? I remember putting it with the pile on the floor over there... Talk to him on the way out.

Pulling out the red glare, the H&H nail gun, industrial hand, a flare gun, a unique Bowie knife by the name of 'bloodnap', and an arc caster. Looking at his other cases and wardrobes, Jack took a look though all of them. He finally took a compromise and decided on the following listed on his pip-boy:

Red glare, bloodnap, H&H nail gun, industrial hand, love and hate, katana, the mysterious magnum, Bozar, a chainsaw (For those times), a fully upgraded 12.7 mm sub-machine gun, A light shining in darkness, a .22 silenced pistol, a double-barreled shotgun with beanbag shots, and a flare gun, with multiple satchel charges, and thrown projectiles made up of throwing knives and tomahawks. Then ammo and repair packs were thrown in, with a couple of doctors' bags, plenty of stims, and several bags of healing poultice. Stealth boys were a must have for Jack, as he hated sneaking around while still being visible. Pieces of scrap metal and electronics were brought along as well, for it never hurt to be prepared.

Almost set. Now just gotta get some food.

Heading off to the dining room of the suite, Jack took a look in his fridge. Taking a bloatfly slider, multiple brahmin steaks and some of cook-cooks soup, as Jack kindly 'borrowed' the recipe, then proceeded cut the fiend's head off with a ripper in a way that even the most insane of the wasteland would be envious of his handiwork.

He resumed taking a U.S. army general outfit, a destroyed slave collar, a rebreather, sunglasses, and Ulysses' duster for clothing and other uses.

Now donning the armors' helmet, he approached the elevator, ignoring Victor for the most part. Then a feeling rushed back to him, the one he felt before. The feeling of being watched.

Fuck this, I'm off to the sierra Madre. Maybe I'll donate some of the money and supplies I find to the followers, hire someone to teach Julie to say a proper goodbye once in a while.

Once in the elevator, he had a very clear goal in mind. Find the Sierra Madre.

"You say his name is Jack?"

Yes, from what I can tell, he's a courier. What confuses me is he doesn't deliver mail as one would expect. He seems like a good-natured creature, but has a hair trigger, and he seems to show signs of insanity..."

"Really? What kind?"

"A rather severe case of ... what was it called... Schizophrenia! His alter ego is coincidentally named Jackie. Apparently the two egos go hoof in hoof, rather extraordinary... Though it's strange, like having another creature inside of him. Now, from what I've seen Jack do to treat people in his land suggests he has a very broad understanding of anatomy and herbs and whatnot. Although his alter ego uses the skills to his advantage... Cutting limbs off seems to be a specialty for him, earning the nickname Jack the ripper."

"I... I see..."

"Now, I'm not rushing to his defense here, but it would seem he does more good than bad, as he seems to receive praise from his surrounding beings. He must be doing the right things if the populace is praising him."

"My, he's a character alright."

"Say princess, do you mind taking over the spell for a while? I'll go get us something to eat. More coffee for you I presume?"

"You remember the way?"

"Of course! I practically grew up here, remember?"

Chrysalis licked her lips, adding to the excitement she and her drones were experiencing. Twilight's choice to go out of the maze provided leverage in her impending sneak attack. Celestia would be going to sleep anytime now, and when she was out of the way, she would get that menacingly annoying Twilight. Then to Shining Armour, and so on and so forth. She was perfectly camouflaged into the shrubs behind Celestia. What a victory this will be... But she must not rush. No, for if she screwed this up, her hive would undoubtedly revoke her, cutting her off from the changling collective and the hive mind altogether. So she waited. Speaking of the hive mind...

"Buzz off and take care of that menacing Twilight! Celestia is mine!" After getting acknowledgement of her command, some of her sneaking class expertly maneuvered to follow Twilight without a sound, taking no heed to Celestia, who was working with... Some kind of spell? Bah! Action first, questions later...

It was then that she noticed Celestia's eyes starting to droop... Almost there... Come on... That's it, give in to the sleep...

D.C. was a desert. A big, crappy, abomination/raider/radiation filled wasteland. Diane sifted through another stupid, fucking, trashcan. She sighed to herself, and started to eat the fancy lads cakes she just found. Bland. Dry. All her life she wanted something to happen to her, but not like this. Her father dead, not to mention all her willing companions... Adjusting her Chinese assault rifle on her back, she sat down on a curb, not caring where she was at the moment. Tears filled her eyes. She led all of them to their eventual dooms. Even Fawkes, and she wasn't even sure how. This 'lone wanderer' crap was starting to get to her. Now, everyone relied on her. For supplies, repairs, and the biggest and most hated thing was hope. Everyone relied on her for hope. Truth be told, she would have put a bullet through her brain a long time ago if it weren't for three dog convincing her otherwise. She mattered to people. And she hated it with a burning passion. Just for once, she wanted to get away from these godforsaken wastes. Leave for a while.

Her tears started to flow, and she put her head on her knees, going into a fetal position. She cried for Fawkes, for her father, for everyone.

If only I could get away from all this...

But, as a wise person once said: Be careful for what you wish for...

Nightmare noticed her somehow related celestial sister, from the shadows her observations were becoming increasingly interesting. This... Jackie character could provide a lot of leverage for her if she played her cards right. But then there's Jack in the way. Maybe I could bring him here, and observe him from afar... Then I could have Celestia's head on a mount over a fireplace, along with those other six and their stupid 'elements of harmony'. Pathetic. What's this? Looks like Celestia didn't sleep too well last night...

As she watched from the shadow of the fountain, Celestia's head began to droop, indicating her trouble keeping conscious...

She was ready to pounce from the shadows, to seize the chance at her eternal night. So close... Yet so far...

Jack went down the hatch to the abandoned Brotherhood bunker, and zipped down the ladder. He crouched, turning on his sneak vision. Drawing his double barrel after noticing a headless corpse to his front-left. He examined the body closely. With a medicine skill greater than that of the followers of the apocalypse, he determined the cause of death.

The body seemed rather fresh, as he could see a small amount of blood coming from the exposed area, most of the male victim's blood in the puddle around the corpse. He'd seen this before. Little Yangtze, a place he despised to see in Big mountain. Some asshole by the name of Elijah was experimenting on the already suffering populace. They lived there for two centuries, surviving off of scraps. Hell, maybe even on each other. Jack took it upon himself to kill them himself, for there was no known way to deactivate the collars, and the fact that they were trying to kill him didn't make matters any better for them either. Jack sighed to himself, knowing all too well this was the death of a slave, trying to escape his master.

But then... he heard a familiar radio broadcast... The unmistakable Vera Keyes broadcasting her loop.

Nightmare sighed inwardly. This is taking too long! I'll come back for her, for now, Twilight would be a great obstacle to get out of the way. Her shadow moved, careful to avoid the sun. Quickly shifting into the castle interior, the semi-demon resumed her search for one of her greatest enemies.

I could have sworn that shadow just moved... The queen thought to herself. Never mind, time to make my move...

The queen emerged quietly from the shrubs behind Celestia. Savoring the moment, she was absolutely trembling with excitement, almost making her wings buzz. Celestia's horn was still glowing, and still protruding the otherworldly portal which showed the humanoid. She at the time didn't take notice to it, nor did she care. This is it...

She pounced, landing on Celestia with a thump.

Celestia's eyes popped open, revealing the chitinous queen atop her. She gasped, and tried to put up a defensive spell, in the process overloading her already in use portal. Just as Chrysalis splayed her fangs, the portal sucked them in. The portal crackled with lightning, awaiting it's candidates to spit out from the observed world into Equestria.

Jack made his way down the Bunkers' stairs, careful not to make a sound. He saw a old, fancy-looking radio, which was in the process of repeating the loop. What is this? Some kind of joke?! In the process he saw two hallways, one left, and the other right. Upon further inspection, the right hallway seemed to be caved in.

What's in the other one? He walked slowly, double barrel in hand. Before he could even find an answer, a blue portal sucked him in like a black hole, before he could even cuss out loud properly.

Celestia was dropped right where Jack was before, landing right on her ass, dazed.

Diane wiped the tears from her eyes, and brought her Chinese assault rifle out. As if getting her wish, a portal opened to her right. She pointed her rifle at it, but was sucked in anyway. In turn, Chrysalis was thrown in, landing face first and making friction with the cement for about a foot, then flopped her hooves onto the ground, and cussed violently to herself.

She then noticed a group of three bipedal creatures... dressed in black, with a... White talon on the left side, (from her perspective it was on the right side) and carrying strange looking metal sticks... They weren't swords, but she could tell they were metal by the sheen. She then realized they spotted her. Oh, son of a-

Diane and Jack appeared directly on the pentagram, Jack on his back, where his chainsaw rested gave him a rather deep scrape, and making him arch his back in pain. Diane was alot luckier, landing on her ass much like Celestia, giving her the reflexive upper hand. Taking the opportunity as soon as it came, she held her rifle up with her right, rubbing her hurting ass with the other. A groan escaped Jack, forcing her eyes, and aim, upon him.

"Ow. Ow. OW! Fuck! Maybe next time I won't bring this damned thing..." Jack looked up, to see Diane pointing her rifle at him. He arose slowly, hands at his sides. Looking around, he saw the shrubs. Being over six feet, he barely was able to look over the shrubs. "Name's Jack by the way." Facing away from her, he looked and saw the Canterlot gardens.

"Diane..." She said finally, letting her defensive pose drop a little.

"Pretty name. Say, do you happen to know where we are Diane?" Still facing the gardens. Diane's first thoughts were of the oasis, but it was much too open for that.

"Your guess is as good as mine. Come on, I have a feeling we're not in the wastes anymore." She holstered her rifle.

"WELL SHIT!"